of people whose tempers and dispositions are as various as their faces, to convince to the contrary. All our influence cannot get them to work on Sundays. An order from the honourable Board on this head will have great weight, to be made publick here. Some of the artificers who were employed by the master workman have had the assurance to say they were not to be directed by the Commissioners, but by their own master workman. The advanced season of the year, and necessity of forwarding the works, is a reason why we did not immediately disband them from the work.

We are, Sir, with esteem, your humble servants,

Nathaniel Wooahull, Esq.

COLONEL ROMANS TO COMMISSIONERS FOR FORTIFICATIONS.

Fort Constitution, November 8, 1775.

GENTLEMEN: Considering myself placed by the Congress in a very conspicuous rank, which requires it of me that I should watch the interests of America, as far as in my power lies, and having frequently observed that the plan we at present pursue is a very lame one, for the remedying of which I have often offered my discourse, but as we are momentarily interrupted by our discontented gentry, I resolved to pen down and lay before you the following considerations, in our present situation at the post of Martelaer’s Rock, in the Highlands:

The number of men now employed on the fortifications are one hundred and thirty-seven, they being distributed as follows, viz: carpenters, thirty-six; masons, twenty-seven; blacksmiths, two; miners, four—sixty-nine artificers: steward, one; cooks, five; overseers, three; seamen, employed as such on shore, two; seamen, employed as such in vessels, four; mortar-makers, two; actual labourers, fifty one—sixty-eight. Total, one hundred and thirty-seven.

This disposition is the most erroneous that can possibly be imagined, and must lend to retard our works; nor can we pretend to do any thing till better regulations take place.

This will appear from the following estimate, which I judge to be right, but am willing to submit the same to the opinion of any able engineer or engineers. Each mason ought to have, as attendants, two stone-breakers, two stone-carriers, one mortar-carrier; five in all.

With this assistance, each mason will with ease make one hundred cubical feet of stone wall in twelve hours’ time, provided, to every four masons one miner be allowed, to work in the quarry.

Thus it is evident, that our twenty-seven masons, attended by one hundred and thirty-five labourers and seven miners, would have completed the two thousand four hundred perches of stone wall, contained in my estimate, in twenty-eight days, of twelve hours each; but, to allow for extra occurrences, I will say thirty days.

Which will amount in thirty days to £454 10s.

N. B. Please to observe, that in my estimate the labourers’ work stands as a separate article.

But instead of such a regular arrangement, a very different one has unhappily taken place at this post, by which means only about seven hundred perches are done. What need have I to animadvert on so palpable an absurdity as that of the half of fifty-one labourers to attend on twenty-seven masons? I say one-half, for surely the other half must be allowed for the attendance on our carpenters.

But what makes it worse, this very day on which I write, I am reduced to the dilemma of keeping only seven masons on the principal work; the other twenty are necessarily employed in breaking and carrying stone, by reason that all the labourers are employed in unloading of vessels, there being now three craft at the pier head, and for fourteen or fifteen days past there have generally been two, nor are we ever without one (at least) to unload. Thus the labourers are all taken off, and men who are hired for seven shillings and six pence per diem do that labour, for the doing of which men may be had at fifty shillings per month.

Where, then, is the wonder that we advance not as we should do, and that the expense becomes great?

With regard to the timber work I have the following to offer. We are on an island, where we have not a single stick of timber fit to do any thing with, except making firewood, and not even that, as most is a shrubby kind of pine; if we had it, the expense of carrying it out of the woods and bringing it to the work would be to the amount of ten shillings per hundred feet, especially if done by the labour of men only, without oxen, whereas now we have good oak delivered at the landings at six shillings.

I will undertake and promise to build a block-house, such as we have now erected, in six weeks, with six hands and two oxen, including one week as allowance for bad weather, whereas now twelve carpenters and twenty labourers have been employed on the timber work thereof since the 10th of October, and will not have completely done till the 10th of November. Nor happens this by reason that the men are idlers. No. But they are not conversant with similar work. It is true that they receive the timber in a muddy, dirty state, with a bad appearance, but it is hewn truer than they are able to do it; then to reduce it to what they judge to be a true square, they line it and hew half way down; afterwards turn it, line it again, and hew the other half way. Thus a piece of timber is lined eight times, and hewed to these eight lines, to make it worse than it was. Next, the piece, through the lack of oxen, is drawn by twenty men to the place where it is wanted. Here the carpenters discover it not to be hewn in the square, and line it and hew it again eight limes over. Then the dovetail is cut, and, when put together, they see it makes bad joints, therefore have it to dub over again. Whereas the country carpenter (used to such work) hews the whole side through by one line, and thereby leaves it, when he parts with it, truer than our people (unacquainted with such work) can possibly do.

The expense of one block-house stands, therefore, as follows:

The country carpenter is still inferior to the ship carpenter for our work, provided we can get him equally honest.

From the above small specimen, it is evident, that even in the cheapest method, timber at this place becomes infinitely higher than the masonry, and I am now convinced that stone towers, of the nature of block-houses, would not amount to above one hundred Pounds each, complete, at this place; and, when finished, they are preferable.

Among other bad regulations that have taken place here, there is one most grievously against the sound policy that